


Found You (Forever)

by Waltzing



Category: Marble Hornets, Slender Man Mythos
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, Implied Violence, POV Alternating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-02
Updated: 2014-03-02
Packaged: 2018-01-14 08:48:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,711
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1260238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Waltzing/pseuds/Waltzing
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Masked Man brings his master a gift.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Found You (Forever)

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for a "Slendy/Masky prompt, but as I can't bring myself to seriously ship the Operator with anyone, it's more of a master-servant (or master-pet) relationship between the two. At the time of writing this, it was already pretty clear in Marble Hornets that Masky (and Hoody) were working _against_ Alex and TO, rather than _with_ them, but I always quite liked the original proxy theory, even after it was basically disproved. So here's the result, a kind of Marble Hornets/Slenderverse creepypasta proxy AU. 
> 
> Originally posted on [Livejournal](http://mh-kink.livejournal.com/557.html?thread=17709#t17709), October 2011.
> 
> "Chris" is my headcanon name for the guy Jay meets in Rosswood in Entry #31 (aka "Trail Guy" according to fandom).

Chris often liked to walk the trails at Rosswood Park once he got out of work. It was a chance to listen to some good music on his iPod and to avoid going home for as long as possible. Usually he didn't come across many others walking through the woods at that time: most people used the paths in the mornings or during the day. Later in the evening was the time when he could usually guarantee he would be alone.  
  
Not this time. While looking up to skip a track on his iPod, he noticed a guy up ahead. The guy had his back to him and had left the established trail, so that he was heading deeper into the forest. Chris was surprised to see that the man was having a lot of trouble walking: he was reaching out and grabbing onto tree trunks for support, and looked like he was trying to keep his weight off one leg. Chris wondered if he had hurt himself in the woods. If he had, he was going in the wrong direction, heading away from the open parkland and the road.  
  
Usually, Chris's first instinct was to keep himself to himself. But it would soon be getting dark, and the man was obviously hurt, lost and headed in the wrong direction. Chris watched him limp onwards for a few more moments before deciding to do the right thing.  
  
"Hey!" He called out. "Are you okay? Need any help?"  
  
The guy up ahead froze. Then slowly he turned around.   
  
*  
  
The masked man struggled through the woods, following a route he knew well. It was taking him much longer than usual: the pain, although not as all-consuming as it had been when his leg was first broken, was nevertheless always there, and his shattered leg was no good for walking on steady ground, never mind uneven forest floor with roots to trip over and fallen branches to avoid. If he fell down, he wasn't sure he'd be able to get up again.  
  
He was Tim - no, he had  _once_  been Tim - but he was as anonymous as his master now. His mask was the symbol of his allegiance. A false face for an encounter with a faceless being.  
  
He couldn't wait to meet his master. It had been too long. He only wished he could bring him something: an offering of sorts. Unfortunately, he was still too weak to do much in the way of hunting for him.  
  
He stepped over a fallen log, and his leg gave a particularly painful twinge. His mask stifled his gasp. Suddenly, a loud, male voice came ringing out from behind him:  
  
"Hey! Are you okay? Need any help?"  
  
The masked man stopped suddenly. He turned around.  
  
*  
  
It was the strangest thing. Chris had to do a double take. At first he thought that that was the man's  _face_ , but no, it couldn't be. The guy was wearing a mask. A white mask, with black markings around the eyes and on the lips.  _What the hell?_  It wasn't Halloween. Maybe he was playing a prank on someone? But Chris hadn't seen anyone else about, and the man was obviously struggling to walk properly, so he wasn't exactly fit enough to jump out at someone.  
  
The guy didn't answer him. After facing him for a long moment, he turned and continued his journey into the forest, if anything moving faster than he had done before.  
  
It was getting dark. Chris paused. He knew he shouldn't leave the trail. But in all the months that he'd walked these paths, he had never seen anything like this. He realized he should probably just leave the guy alone. Maybe he was just some local harmless weirdo who liked dressing up. Whatever, Chris reasoned that the guy was hurt and presumably in need of help.   
  
Curiosity got the better of him. He was determined to be the good Samaritan for a change. Surely it would be good karma to help the guy out? Or at least make sure he didn't come to any harm on his way through the woods. He paused his iPod, left the path and began following the man in the mask.

*

The man in the mask was aware that he was being followed, but he didn't change his course, making his way ever deeper into the forest as night fell. His leg ached as always: a constant reminder of a previous failure. And with every painful step, a word full of seething hatred and fury echoed through his head: Kralie. Kralie. Kralie.  
  
*  
  
Chris traipsed on through the woods, making sure to keep a safe distance between himself and the strange man. Not because he thought the guy was dangerous: he seemed more confused than anything. He simply didn't want to scare him. Anyway, he was certain that if the guy suddenly did attack him or whatever, he would be able to take him down without a huge problem: the guy was smaller than him. If worst came to worst, he could always run away. The guy's injured leg would mean he could easily lose him if he had to.  
  
He ducked under a low branch and carried on walking. Really, he thought, it was unlikely the guy was anything other than harmless.  
  
*  
  
The man in the mask was nearly there, and now he had a gift with him. His master would be pleased, of that he was sure.  
  
Still, he would never be his master's favorite. That honor was bestowed on the Kralie kid, the one who had been singled out, selected to serve his master when he was only a child. His masked servant ( _Tim_ , he thought, from a distance) would never have the privilege of knowing he was selected, that he was the one. The knowledge burned him and he seethed. How he hated Alex Kralie. How he longed to get him back for stealing his master's attention and for not even having the awareness to fully appreciate what he had. He wanted to stab-burn-crush Kralie, wanted to eliminate him and have his master all to himself. But he also knew that destroying Alex would greatly anger his master, so he settled for simply hating his guts.  
  
He carried on walking. Past the rock formation, over the fallen tree. He knew where he was going. Only a few more minutes and they would arrive at the meeting place.  
  
He was glad he was being followed.  
  
*

Chris had been following the masked guy for only a few minutes when all of a sudden a clearing opened up ahead. The guy stopped when he reached it and stood there for a while. Chris, who had stayed in the wooded part, was just about to give up and leave when something strange happened. It was - and Chris couldn't believe what he was seeing - as if reality seemed to shift in front of his eyes. One minute, the clearing was empty, the next, the clearing seemed to warp, and suddenly a dark, tree-like figure was standing in its center.  _What the -_  
  
A wave of absolute terror crashed over him. Chris trembled uncontrollably. The -  _thing_  - was alive. It moved slowly, like a tree in a breeze, but it seemed somehow humanoid.   
  
The masked man limped slowly toward it.  _No_. Chris thought.  _Stop!_  . The unearthly figure slowly it raised what must be its head. It seemed to look right at Chris, and yet -  _how could it?_  It had no face.  
  
Chris fell to his knees. He nearly blacked out _. I need to leave_ , he thought. He tried to get up, but his legs failed him.  
  
From the ground, he watched in horrified fascination as the masked man walked right up close to the tall figure. Slowly, ever so slowly, the monstrous creature raised an abnormally long arm. Its pale hand brushed around the edge of the man's mask. Chris gasped as the masked man leaned into the touch, and seemed to nuzzle at its hand. It was like the monster was caressing him - no, _petting_ him.  _What..._  
  
The masked man took a step back. He reached down and pulled up one of his pants legs to reveal a makeshift splint on the leg he had been limping on. The tree-like figure seemed to consider the man's leg, almost thoughtfully. Then it straightened up. The masked man turned then, and appeared to look right at Chris. He inclined his head slightly, and the next thing Chris knew, he was on his feet and moving toward the man and the horrifying figure. It was as if his body was in a trance: he wanted nothing more than to be out of that place, but his feet kept taking him closer and closer and closer...  
  
 _No, no, no, no, no_  
  
The tall, slender figure loomed above him. It was the last sight Chris would ever see.  
  
*  
  
The man in the mask smiled to himself as the screams were abruptly cut off. His master was pleased, he could tell. He was a good servant and was sure he would be rewarded. He turned his back on the carnage taking place in the center of the clearing and waited. After a while, the sound of ripping and thumps from limbs and body parts being thrown and dropped subsided. Only then did the masked man turn around.   
  
As always, his master had cleaned up after himself. He could see no evidence of what had just occurred. He limped right up to his master. His master slowly and carefully placed a long white hand on his leg, palm down. He felt a sharp sensation as his shattered leg bone re-set and healed itself. Then the pain disappeared all at once. Once his master was done, the masked man rolled up his pant leg and removed the splint. His leg looked and felt as if it had never been broken.  
  
 _Thank you_  he said, inside his head. His master inclined his head, then the world seemed to change and suddenly his master was gone.  
  
The masked man strode from the clearing, enjoying the sensation of being able to walk so easily, and without pain.  
  
On his way, he noticed a pair of white headphones dangling from a branch above his head.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Since I wrote this, it has been revealed that it was Tim who was stalked by TO from a young age. We still don't know about Alex.


End file.
